Fort Lauderdale's Renaissance Luxury Hotel is First in a Decade

Fort Lauderdale - June 13, 2001 --- The opening of another hotel in Ft. Lauderdale wouldn't seem a particularly noteworthy event in a city teeming with about 315 hotels and motels and some 15,500 rooms.

But Tuesday's opening of the Renaissance Fort Lauderdale Hotel on the 17th Street Causeway marked the first luxury hotel to open in the city in more than a decade. The event drew a handful of local politicians and dignitaries.

"Your success is our success," said Nicki Grossman, president of the Greater Fort Lauderdale Convention and Visitors Bureau, raising a champagne glass or orange juice toast to the $37 million hotel.

Having shed its image as a party destination for rowdy college students on spring break, Fort Lauderdale now is reaping the benefits. "We have now earned the right to encourage the development of luxury hotels."

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